July 4 photo project to help York track coach battling cancer

A local photography company is using its cameras to fight cancer and needs the public's help.

Tyler Brown Photography in York City will take the public's photos for $10 per person during the July 4 celebration at Sovereign Bank Stadium. The gates open at 5:30 p.m. at 5 Brooks Robinson Way in the city.

A portion of the proceeds from the photo sales will be used to benefit William Penn Senior High School track coach Tony Jones, who is battling rectal cancer, said city resident Carol Brown, who runs the photo company with Lawrence Tyler.

Tyler Brown Photography wants to help Jones, 57, with medical and everyday bills, as Jones has undergone several surgeries and radiation treatments and is now receiving chemotherapy, Brown said.

Brown said she's known Jones since their high school days in the early 1970s. Brown said she, Tyler and Jones are all graduates of William Penn Senior High School, where Jones was a basketball and track star.

"(Jones) just has that outgoing personality that makes people gravitate to him," she said. "The youth look up to him as a role model. You can see the respect they have for him."

Jones, who is married and has two adult children, said he was diagnosed with cancer a year ago. He said he is thankful for the community's support as he battles the disease.

"People have been reaching out to me and trying to help me, people I thought forgot about me," Jones said. "My community, my school, my track team are reaching out to me and praying for me, and it makes you feel good."

Jones said his wife of 35 years Rhonda Jones has been his fighting partner as he endured sickness and hospital stays.

"Before all this happened, my wife kept telling me to get a checkup, but I didn't until I started feeling bad and then I got this diagnosis," Jones said. "It's a blessing having her there fighting for me."

Jones said he plans to attend the July 4 celebration and is grateful for Tyler Brown Photography's efforts on his behalf.

Both Brown and Jones said they hope the photo sessions also encourage people to get physical checkups.

"And we're hoping people realize that if they are struggling with cancer, they are not alone," Brown said. "There are people in the community who are behind them in their time of need."

Besides raising money for Jones, a portion of the photo proceeds will be used for Tyler Brown Photography's future cancer awareness projects, Brown said.

The company has held a Bid Against Cancer auction, has designed and raised money to post four local billboards featuring people who dealt with cancer, and arranged a downtown York photo display of local cancer survivors.

Brown is a two-time cancer survivor, but has lost her husband and mother to the disease. Tyler lost a mother and sister to cancer, Brown said.